On The Same Page
by only-some-loser
Summary: While Mac is away talking to little Annabelle, Jack and Cage have a little chat about Mac's search for his father. (tag to 2x06, Jet Engine Pickup Truck)


**AN: This is the twenty-seventh installment of my personal challenge to write a tag for every episode. This is a tag for 2x06, Jet Engine + Pickup Truck. It takes place while Mac is talking to Annabelle. You guys got lucky! I got home from orientation a little earlier than I thought I would, so you guys get the next tag today instead of tomorrow. This is more of a drabble, but it's the best I could come up with. I'm still a little new at writing Cage, so I hope I've done her justice, as well as her relationship with Jack. When will they make Cage an available character to choose on this site? I hope you enjoy, and please leave a review!**

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Jack sat with Cage in the coffee shop, the two of them slowly sipping on their drinks. They'd dropped off Mac at Annabelle's house - she and her mother had recently relocated to LA to a house that looked strikingly similar to their old one in Austin - then headed to the coffee shop to wait. They would pick up Mac in about an hour, then the three of them would catch a movie together. This left Jack with something he didn't usually get: time alone with Cage. He was a little hesitant to say anything, for the slight fear that somehow anything he said when he was alone with the woman would be turned into some mind game for her to get inside his thick skull. Maybe he was being paranoid, but still.

Luckily, Cage broke the silence first, saying, "do you really think it's a good idea for Mac to be looking for his father? I mean, I know he can find him if he really puts his mind to it, but is it a good idea?" Cage seemed genuinely concerned for the kid, which Jack could definitely appreciate.

"I've been wonderin' that for quite some time now, but I'm gonna be with him through it all, no matter what," Jack affirmed. Nothing would stop him from being there for that kid.

"I know you will," Cage rushed out. "You two have a bit of a codependency, if you haven't noticed. But is it a good idea for Mac to be searching for his father in the first place? Like I said, I know he can find him, but isn't it most likely that his father doesn't want him in his life? Why else would he have abandoned his son as a child and never spoken to him since?" she asked. Cage was raising the exact same questions that Jack had asked himself again and again. He just wanted what was best for Mac, but he also wanted this question answered. Mac deserved to have it answered. The kid was nothing short of spectacular and he deserved to know why he had been abandoned as a child.

"Honestly, Cage, probably not. The most likely scenario is that Mac's old man is utter trash who walked out on his son simply because he didn't care enough to stick around, and the reason he hasn't reached out since is the same. The man doesn't care. He couldn't, with the way he's acted. Nothing about anything that man has done provides any evidence that he cares about Mac at all. So, when we do find him, because we will, and he breaks the kid's heart again, I'm gonna be there to break his face," Jack said with a sadistic smile. "And I'll enjoy it. It's as simple as that." The bastard deserved so much worse than what Jack was planning on doing, but he knew he couldn't go too far. Mac wouldn't allow that, broken heart be damned.

"Mac's a good kid," Cage replied, pausing to take a sip of her coffee. "I guess he must have gotten that from his mother then. His father would be the vastly intelligent one, but his mother must have had that heart and soul and unyielding moral compass," she finished with a shrug.

"Yeah, I think you'd be right," Jack responded. Mac so good and pure, and his father couldn't be, so he had to have gotten it from his mother. That was the only logical conclusion.

The two returned to their respective drinks and a comfortable silence, just people watching, and occasionally checking the clock to see how long they had before they had to pick Mac up to go see the movie. It was surprisingly much more comfortable to just sit with Cage than Jack had thought it would be. It had definitely taken some time, but Jack was really warming up to her.

"I could destroy that man and never leave a trace that I was ever there," she said suddenly. Jack wasn't sure if she were referring to destroying MacGyver Sr. in the physical sense or some other way, but he was confident that Cage could do it any way she desired. She was a very imposing woman.

"Depending on what happens when we find the man, I might have to take you up on that. And I won't even tell Mac," Jack replied with a grin. Cage matched it as she took another sip of her coffee.

Jack would never admit it, but he felt very touched that Cage would go so far for Mac. That kid meant everything to him, and to have someone else on his team when it came to protecting that kid certainly helped to quell a few of Jack's nerves. Mac was always getting himself into trouble one way or another, so it was really nice to have someone else looking after him and willing to go to lengths to protect him. Cage certainly was one hell of a firecracker.


End file.
